


Second Favourite Thing

by Multifandom_damnation



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Best Friends, Captivity, Desperation, Exhaustion, F/M, Gen, Headaches & Migraines, Male-Female Friendship, Not Canon Compliant, Psychological Horror, Psychological Trauma, Recovery, Sleep Deprivation, Speed Force, Team as Family, Young Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-03 10:41:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16324703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Multifandom_damnation/pseuds/Multifandom_damnation
Summary: Jesse Quick has never loved anyone like she loved Wally West.So when the Speed Force takes him away from her, there will be hell to pay, and she will do anything and everything she can to get him back.Nobody will take him away from her again.





	Second Favourite Thing

**Author's Note:**

> LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN. I know this isn't how it went down in the show and that they got Wally back much different than this but I really needed some of this and wanted to try writing something different and do it in a different style. So, tell me what you think and if you'd like more of this xx

Jesse Quick has never loved anyone like she loved Wally West.

She feels her love for him somewhere deep in her bones and if she listens closely, she can feel his love for her too, singing across the bonds of the Speed Force like stings connecting them. Their vibrations are so similar, wavelengths so aligned that when they run together, their love for each other feels like it’s coming from one single person.

So when Wally went missing, swallowed up by the Speed Force to replace an undeserving prisoner, Jesse felt it in her _soul_.

She had screamed and cried like a piece of her was being ripped from her body even before she’d seen the security footage. H.R held her tightly in his arms and promised that Wally would be alright, that he was a strong young man and he was brave-

She knew all that too. But she also knew how scared he would be. He didn’t know Wally as Jesse did. He didn’t know what Wally looked like when he cried in her arms. He didn’t know what Wally looked like after a run, basking in success. He didn’t know what Wally looked like just after she kisses him and tell him she loves him. Nobody knows but her.

It could have been months, days, years, and Jesse had not left her seat on the floor of the Breach Room, one hand resting on the ruined mass of Wally’s uniform, her only company was her bittersweet memories of a yellow-clad speedster and Cisco, vibing constantly in an attempt to search out Wally’s location and open a breach for Barry when he did so.

Jesse knew it wouldn’t work. Cisco may have a connection to the Speed Force but there was no connection stronger to it than that of a speedster. After too many consecutive tries, Cisco sat down heavily on the stairs, rubbing his throbbing temples. They didn’t speak because there were no more words to say. Jesse knew that Cisco loved Wally- not like she did, nobody could Wally as she did, but it came close- and knew that he would do anything to get him back, but Jesse could see the exhaustion seeping out of him in waves. A pointless effort.

Vibing took a lot out of him, Jesse understands, and she has never been so grateful for his help until she watches him close his eyes against the pain thrumming behind his eyelids and rests his burning skin against the cool metal of the handrail. “Well find him,” He reassures, strain to his voice and Jesse both loves him and hates him for it. “I promise, we’ll find him and we’ll bring him home in one piece.”

“Please,” she whispers brokenly into the silence filled only by Cisco’s pants. “Please don’t make me promises neither of us can keep.” Cisco doesn’t reply, doesn’t look at her in sympathy but in understanding before turning his gaze away to watch for any signs of breaching. He might not understand what losing a lover to the very thing that gave you your power, but he did understand losing a loved one from circumstances out of his control that he could have prevented if he had just paid enough attention.

Neither of them moves for a long while. Jesse knows that she should be helping Barry with patrolling Central City now that they’re a man down and Cisco knows that he should be up in the Cortex with Caitlin and Julian and H.R manning the coms and checking the systems. But nobody has called them away yet so they don’t move from their vigil.

It’s no secret that Cisco was fond of Wally but if that were the only reason he was here with her then it would have been a lie. Cisco was the only person who could open a breach to wherever Wally was and Jesse could see the entirety of the situation weighing him down like an anchor in the ocean. He was sleeping even less than Jesse was in case a clue, a tether was to appear and he missed it. They took shifts so Cisco could feel less guilty about passing out but Jesse knew that Cisco secretly watched the empty floor when he didn’t think Jesse would see.

Someone had brought them down trays of food- maybe Iris, maybe Joe, maybe Caitlin, she couldn’t tell- but neither of them touched it, too strung up and paranoid and heart-achy to even think about food.  Barry had come to give them a pep-talk, but Cisco had kindly told him to shove off and Barry left without another word and hadn’t come back since. H.R had come with a song, and twin glares of anger had backed him out as well. They hadn’t heard from Julian and frankly, Jesse hoped they didn’t.

By this point, Cisco’s pain is so palpable that Jesse could feel it burning her up from the inside and could only imagine what it was like for him, but with a tortured sigh and a groan, he stands. “I have to try again,” he mutters to himself, grabbing hold of Wally’s favourite book and zoning out of the real world and into another vibe. Jesse understands his desperate attempts but also knows how not to get her hopes up. Soon, his eyes will come back into focus and his body will slump and he will drop to the floor with his head in his hands.

Barry sits down next to her and Jesse tries not to acknowledge him. Not out of spite, she knows that what happened to Wally was of no fault of Barry’s, but his presence is just a reminder of what she’s lost and may never get back. “He’s strong, Jesse. He’ll be alright.” A false promise to calm her wired nerves.

“How can you be sure?” She asks bitterly because while she doesn’t blame Barry for Wally being taken, she hasn’t forgotten how he yelled at Wally for keeping his hallucinations a secret and kicked him off the team despite all their training. “You made that place to keep _Savitar_ in. What makes you think he’s going to be able to cope?”

“Because Wally is one of the good guys.” Barry sounds like he’s both trying to convince himself and to will Wally back into existence through compliments. A petulant child out of ideas. “He’s one of the greatest people I know. It was made to keep bad guys locked away- it will treat Wally differently.”

Jesse snorts because doubt and resentment and apathy are the only feelings she can muster at the moment. “You have a really warped way at looking at the world.”

He doesn’t say anything else, just sits quietly until Cisco collapses to the floor with a moan of pain, a hand to his head. Barry pats Jesse’s shoulder, passes Cisco a bottle of painkillers and an unopened canteen of water before leaving silently.

Watching Cisco swallow more painkillers that are probably good for him, Jesse wants to tell him to stop. To take a break. To rest. But Jesse knows how important he is in getting Wally out, and Cisco knows this too, so she doesn’t speak. She knows Cisco wants to tell her to leave as well, but he knows that she won’t move until Wally is back in her arms, so he tries harder to find him.

Running her hands over the rough and burnt fabric of Wally’s suit, she thinks, _is he in pain? Is he scared? Is he lost? Does he miss us? Does he remember us? Will he still love me when he comes out? How will I live without him now that he’s all I can think about?_

The greatest thing to ever happen to her was getting speed and finding a connection to the Speed Force. The second greatest thing was falling in love with Wally West. Jesse would do anything to find him and bring him home. She was so desperate that she considered opening a portal into the Speed Force herself and running around until she finds him.

She needn’t have worried because as she holds Wally’s uniform to her chest, Cisco comes out of another vibe, dropping the book to clatter on the floor and thrust his arm out, fingers curling around something she couldn’t’ see. His eyes were wide and wild and when he turned his head to shout for Barry, his voice was desperate and hopeful. Jesse stood as the others approached, Jay suddenly with them, and Cisco’s arm was being jerked around wildly.

“What is it?” Iris asks as she slides to a stop behind Jesse. “What’s happened?”

“Wally,” Cisco gasps and the air in the room stills, except for the speedsters, who being vibrating uncontrollably in anticipation. “I’ve found him, get ready.”

“What are you holding onto? You look like you’re fishing?” Joe sounds nervous and his voice is thick like he’d been crying recently, and Jesse can sympathise.

“No time to explain,” Cisco opens a breach and Jesse can feel the lightning storm crackling just past it, could feel the electricity in her bones and knows that Barry and Jay can feel it too. Cisco shouts, “Run Barry, run!” as the breach opens fully and they both disappear through the breach in a blur of sizzling voltage.

Cisco’s legs started to give out after the first hour, the lack of sleep and effort to maintain the breach proving to be a very difficult task and he flops back down onto the stairs beside Jesse, hand balanced on his knees and fist closed, a beam of energy wisping around his fingers and shooting towards the breach. Iris and Joe sat together on the floor, Caitlin occupying herself by watching the monitors and Julian replaced Barry position by pacing hole in the floor. H.R stood by Jesse, tapping his drumsticks absently on the railing. Jesse almost wanted to tell him to stop, but the sound was better than the silent anticipation.

Eventually, Cisco’s breathing becomes laboured and he closes his eyes against the onslaught of pain and Jesse longs to approach him, wrap her arms around him in a tight hug, thank him for all he’s doing and has done for Wally. But she knows how hard this already is, and doesn’t want him to lose concentration, so she sits where she is and eyes his condition silently.

H.R leaves to get more coffee and returns later with trays full of it. Iris falls asleep on Joe’s shoulder, Joe’s hand in her hair. Caitlin sits beside Cisco and rests a hand encouragingly on his other arm. Julian is still pacing. Jesse rocks back and forth on the steps, Wally’s suit clutched tightly in her hands, her eyes glued to the glowing breach until spots appear in her eyes and her vision goes blue.

Jesse hates herself for it, but as the hour’s tick by, she feels like giving up, like she’s lost three speedsters- she’s all that’s left. But then Cisco gasps, and through the breach comes Barry and Wally, no sign of Jay, and Jesse stands to attention.

Wally falls to his knees and would have fallen to his side if Jesse hadn’t wrapped her arms around him. His face was wane, his eyes were sunken and haunted, his hands were shaking, his skin was cold, the Speed Force she could feel in his body tingling under her fingertips was sickly. It was an odd experience for Jesse. His lighting was dull yet bright, weak yet strong, faint yet bold. His time in the Speed Force had strengthened his connection to it, yet the prison had weakened him, taken something away. She wished she could lend him some of hers.

She hugs him and whispers _Wally_ and _I love you_ and _you're home_ and _you're safe_  until the words no longer hold any meaning on her tongue. Wally sat there on his knees for too long until her slowly reached up and rested one hand on Jesse’s back. The only attempt at a hug he could muster.

Cisco stands shakily, patting Wally’s shoulder and squeezing Jesse’s- the unspoken ‘I told you so’ passed between them- before exiting the Breach Room, taking Julian, H.R and Caitlin with him, leaving the West’s, Barry and Jesse alone in the room together for a much-needed reunion.

Wally talks little, yes/no answers, shakes his head or smiles weakly the whole time. When they get him into the med bay, Caitlin asks Barry where Jay went, and he shakes his head and says “Later.” Jesse doesn’t need an in-depth explanation to know what that meant- it’s a shame. She liked Jay and wanted to thank him for bringing Wally back to them- to her.

Later, much later, after Wally’s had a nap and everyone has reluctantly gone home for the night, Cisco curled up in a chair in the corner ‘keeping watch’, Wally opens his eyes and startles Jesse out of her reading- the book Cisco had used before to vibe Wally’s location. “Hey,” he whispers weakly but it’s enough for Jesse to drop the book and turn to him. “You look tired.”

“Can you blame me?” she asks gently, placing a soft kiss on his forehead. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I can breathe again,” At Jesse’s horrified look, Wally shook his head. “Not like that. In the Speed Force, it was a little like being sat on by Grodd, you know? Like, there was air, but it was just really hard to get it into my lungs.”

Sighing, Jesse ran her fingers through Wally’s short hair, digging her nails gently into his scalp, Wally closing his eyes and leaning eagerly into the touch. “You know, that doesn’t really reassure me.”

Wally reached out and grabbed her free hand, a finger marking her page in the book, and brought it close to his chest. “I’m sorry I scared you. I just… I wanted to get rid of him. Forever. I thought that-”

“You don’t need to explain yourself to me.” Jesse insisted, kissing his knuckles. “I understand. And I still love you. But next time, promise me you’ll tell me next time you hallucinate about a homicidal Speed God and go after him yourself.”

As Wally snorted out a laugh, Cisco stied in his chair and Jesse hushed them both softly. “Not so loud. You’ll wake Cisco.”

“Cisco?” Wally strained to sit up and look but gave up when his head barely rose above the pillows and instead flopped down to look at Jesse for an explanation. “What’s wrong with him?”

“He’s just exhausted.” Jesse watched Cisco snore with a smile as her fingers continued to move on Wally’s scalp. “He’s been vibing for ages- trying to find you. He almost fell on his face in the Breach Room. Caitlin made him stay in the med bay so she can keep an eye on his vitals, but he told everyone he’d keep watch to make sure you stay stable throughout the night, so he took the chair.” She laughed. “He worked his way around Caitlin’s demands and still managed to get some sleep.”

Wally laughed softly. “Remind me to thank him tomorrow.”

Placing a kiss on the tip of his nose, Jesse smiled against his skin and felt the healthy heat start to warm Wally’s skin. “I’m glad we got you back. I don’t know what I would have done without you.” She admitted.

Beneath her, Wally shifted onto his side so he can gaze up at her. There was so much love in his eyes, so much trust. What had Jesse ever done to deserve him? “Let me guess. You were about to come in after me if the others hadn’t found another way.”

“Thankfully, it didn’t come to that,” She teased. “But you know me. I would have done anything-” She was cut off by Wally’s lips colliding passionately against hers, all desperation and wanting and love. Jesse could feel the Speed Force connecting them, involved in everything they did and everything they were, even at this moment, and Jesse knew Wally could feel the friction turning into a spark between their lips as well. “What was that for?” She whispered, out of breath and dazed.

“I love you, Jesse Quick.” Wally said it like a promise- like it was the only thing that mattered, the only thing he stood for and believed in. “And I will always love you. And I know you want me to open up and talk about it but I only just got back. If you’ll be patient with me, I promise I’ll tell you, sometime. But not right now, not tonight.” He kissed her back again, gently this time and pulled away just as swiftly. “Alright?”

Jesse swore that if anyone- Speed Force or Immortal or Death be damned- stole Wally West away from her again, she would sail hell and high water to make them pay. “I will always wait for you, Wally.” And it’s true- she would always wait. The smile on his face would make it worth it. “And when you’re ready to talk, I’ll always be here.”

Jesse wanted to be with him for longer and it was obvious that Wally did too, but his eyelids were starting to close again as his body got used to being out of the Speed Force so she placed a kiss on each of his closing eyelids and whispered _I love you, I love you, I love you_ and the words never lost their meaning, especially not once Wally fell asleep to her voice and a smile on his lips. “I’ll be here when you wake up.” She whispered, knowing he couldn’t hear her and not caring in the slightest.

The greatest thing to ever happen to her was getting speed and finding a connection to the Speed Force. The second greatest thing was falling in love with Wally. But after having him back in her arms where he belongs after so many days captured and lost and making her worry, maybe she could move him a little higher up on that leaderboard.

Jesse Quick has never loved anyone like she loved Wally West.


End file.
